Winter is the season we move indoors. That’s especially true this year, as the pandemic rages on, and Diana Ejaita’s latest cover nods to the hours we spend at home reading, listening to music, or simply looking out the window. We recently talked to Ejaita about her work.
Your winter scene feels so warm and bright. Do you have any tips for getting through months of cold weather?
This year, I’m spending winter in Burkina Faso. But the image is really about being back home in Berlin, and the coziness of home in a cold winter. I’m a big lover of hot soups, teas, and herbal infusions. I like being cuddled by soft and warm blankets—the act of creating little nests that help alleviate the guilt of not going outside. And winter is also an invitation to self-reflect. Home is the place where we create intimate, magical moments, whether alone or with loved ones.
You’ve been splitting your time between Berlin and artist’s residencies in Burkina Faso, Senegal, and Nigeria. What has that been like?
I appreciate the residency experience, because it allows you to approach a country through work. The programs usually last about three months, and even though that’s not an especially long time, it’s still enough to immerse yourself in the daily life and cultural scenes of a country.
At the moment, I’m in Ziniaré, a town near the capital, Ouagadougou. I was invited here—along with three other artists—by the Operndorf Afrika project. The curator this year is the great Nigerian artist Akinbode Akinbiyi, who is a pillar in the photography scene and an amazing human being.
